Combined feed-water regulator, indicator, and alarm.



i PATENTED SEPT. 8, 1903. I. W. COLLINS 8; E. TOBIAS. COMBINED FEED WATER REGULATOR, INDICATOR, AND ALARM.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 25,1902.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

no MODEL.

m: .pmnms mzrzns cc. PHOTO/LHHO, WASHING No. 738,661. PATENTED SEPT. a, 190s. P. W. COLLINS & E. TOBIAS. COMBINED FEED WATER REGULATOR, INDICATOR, AND ALARM.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 25, 1902.

N0 MODEL. 2 SHEETS-SHEET 2 .zww zzns ZZJZZz'ae UNITED STATES Patented September 8 190$.

PATENT FFICE.

FRANK W. COLLINS AND ELROYTOBIAS, OF HASTINGS, MICHIGAN.

$PECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 738,661, dated September 8 1903-.

Application filed July 25, 190 2; swun -116,936. (Nomodel-l To all whom ,it a concern: 1

Be it knownthat we, FRANK W. CoLLms and ELROY T0B'IA's,citi'zei1s ofthe United States, residing at Hastings, in the county of Barry and State ofMichigan, have invented a new and useful Combined Feed-Water Regulator, Indicator, and Alarm,of which the following is a specification.

The .lnventionrelates to a combined feed- [0 water regulator, indicator, and alarm.

Theobject of the present invention is to provide a simple and comparatively inexpensive device adapted toautomatically control the supply of steam to .the feed-pump of a boiler for regulating the supply of water to the same and capable of indicating the height of the water within a boilerand of sounding the same.

tion for sounding thealarm. Fig, 6 is a see an alarm when thewaterrises above or falls below certain desired. levels.

A further object of the invention is to provide a device of this character which will afford ready access to all of the partswith the exceptionvof' the float and which will be capable of being readily reversed to suit the different positions of boilers. v

The invention consists in the construction and novel combination and arrangement of parts hereinafter fully described, illustrated in the accompanying drawings, and pointed 30' out in the claims hereto appended.

Inthe drawings, Figure 1,isa side elevation of a furnace provided with a device constructed in accordancewith this invention.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged detail view of the device. Fig. 3 is a verticalsectional view of Fig. 4 is a horizontal sectional "view; Fig. 5 is a detail view of the constructional view of the valve for controlling the flow ofsteam to the feed-pump. Fig. '7 is a detail view illustrating th e'arrang'ement of the slots of the valve. Fig.8 is a detail view illustra'tingthe manner of mounting the sup- .plemental pointer orindicator.

Like numerals of reference designateeorrespending par'tsjinall thefiguresof the'drawlllgS.

1 designates an approximately sectorshaped casing forming a float-chamber for go the reception of a float 2 and provided with upper and lower pipe connections 3 and 4, extending from the top and bottom of the enlarged end of the casing and designed to be connected with a boiler at points above and below the level of the water and to communi= cate with the steam-space and with the water- The casing is composed of front and rear plates or sections 5 and 6, which are securedtogether by suitable fastening devices and which are bulged outward at the enlarged end of the casing to provide an upright way for thefloat and to form a watercolumn. The float is suitably connected with astem 7, which is mounted on a transverse shaft 8, and the latter is journaled in suitable bearings in the front and back plates and extends through stuffing boxes, as clearly shown in Fig. 4 of the drawings.

The casing by being constructed of the form shown in the drawings is capable of being readily reversed, and eitherof the pipe connections is adapted to be arranged at the top or bottom in order to enable the casing to be positioned properly with relation to the boiler.

The transverse shaft upon which the stem is mounted extends outward beyond the front of thecasing and carries an oscillatory pointer 9, which moves overa graduated gageplate 10, arranged at one side of the casing; but the gage-plate may be arranged at the end or any other desired point. The pointer or indicator 9 is connected with a supplemental pointer or indicator 11 by bell-crank levers 12 and 13 and suitable connecting-rods 14, 15, and 16'; but any desired number of connections may be employed, as will be readily understood. The supplemental infldicator or pointer 11 is .pivotally mounted on a gageplate 17, which is provided with a series of graduations 18, corresponding to those of the graduated plate of the casing. The supplemental indicator is designed to be arranged at any convenient point and may be located at one side of a furnace,near the front with an arm 23 of a throttle-valve. The arm yoke or frame 29 is provided with an enlarged threaded opening for the reception of a threaded portion 31. The valve is mounted in a primary pipe 32, which connects the steam-space of the boiler and the cylinder of the feed-water pump 35, whereby the steam in flowing through the pipe from the boiler to the pump for operating the latter passes through the valve-casing, and the valve 26 is provided with oppositely-curved slots 33, which as the valve is moved by the float, as presently described, register to a greater or less extent with similar slots 34, formed in-the valve-seat to control the supply of steam to the feedpump and regulate the speed of the latter, thus regulating the amount of water pumped into the boiler.

33 is asecondary pipe which communicates with the primary pipe at points above and below the throttle valve 26 and through which the steam from the boiler may flow directly to the feed-water pump without passing through the throttle-valve 26. This pipe is provided with a stop-valve 34', while the primary pipe is provided with a similar valve 35*, which are operable for permitting the steam to flow through either of the pipes as circumstances may require. Thus it will be seen that ordinarily as the float 2 rises and falls in the casing 1, owing to the rising and falling of i the water in the boiler, the shaft 8 will be rotated and through the medium of the intermediate connections closes or opens the throttle-valve 26, thus cutting off or admitting steam to the pump for controlling the speed of the latter and automatically regulating the amount of water in the boiler to maintain the same at a practically uniform level. If, however, the water in the boiler should from any cause fall below the proper level, the operator may by closing valve 35 and opening valve 34 send the steam direct from the boiler to the pump for driving the latter at a higher rate of speed to pump the Water more rapidly into the boiler until it attains the proper level therein, or if at any time'the throttle-valve 26 and its operating mechanism should become defective the steam may pass from the boiler directly to the pump through the pipe 33 while the said valve is undergoing repairs.

In order to enable an alarm to be sounded when the water within the boiler rises or falls beyond a predetermined level, a whistle 37 is employed. The upper and lower portions of the casing are capped to receive a water tube or gage, and when the water-tube is not employed the tubular portions or extensions 38, which are interiorly threaded, are closed by threaded plugs 39, as clearly illustrated in Fig.2 of the drawings; but the water-tube may be employed, if desired. The indicator or pointer 9 is especially advantageous even when a water-tube is employed, for the reason that the water-tube is liable to be broken or to become clogged with mud or other accumulation and prevent the level of the water from being ascertained with great accuracy. The-whistle-may be mounted on either of the tubular extensions 38, each of which is provided with a threaded aperture'to receive the whistle, and the lower tubular extension has its aperture normally closed by a plug or screw 40. This construction also greatly facilitates the reversal of the device to enable it to be properly arranged.

The lever 41 of the whistle is connected by an adjustable rod 42 with means for automatically operating it, and the said rod 42 is composed of adjustable sections provided with slots and connected by suitable fastening devices 43, passing through the slots, as clearly-shown in Fig. 5. The outer end of the connecting-rod is pivoted to the lever .of the whistle and the inner end is provided with a longitudinal slot 44 to receive the transverse shaft '8, upon which is mounted a cam 45. The cam 45 is provided with a pair of projecting arms located above and below a roller 46 and adapted to engage the same when the float rises or falls sufflciently. The roller, which is mounted on a pin or projection, forms an antifriction device for enabling the connecting-rod to be readily reciprocated for sounding the whistle, and the said connecting-rod may be normally held in position (illustrated in Fig. 2 of the drawings) by any suitable meanssuch, for example, as a spring-and is moved against the tension exerted by the same by means of the cam 35, which in turn is actuated by the rotation of shaft 8, due 'to the rising and falling of the float 2.

It will be seen that the device is exceedingly simple and inexpensive in construction, that it is capable of being readily reversed to arrange it to suit a. boiler, and that it is adapted to control the supply of steam to the feed-pump, and thereby regulate the feed of water to a boiler. It will also be apparent that the device is adapted to indicate accurately the level of the water within a boiler and that it is also capable of sounding an alarm when the water rises or falls beyond desired levels. Furthermore, it will be clear that with the exception of the float all of the parts are exteriorly arranged and ready access may be had to the same for repairs, adj ustment, or other purposes.

The weight of the supplemental indicator may be supported by a coiled spring 47; but any other suitable device, such as a weight, may be employed for preventing the supplemental pointer or indicator from affecting the operation "of the" device. The cam for actuating the whistle is adj ustably mounted on the transverse shaft by means of'a setscrew 48, as clearly shown in Figs. 2 and5.

What we claim is- I t 1. Ina device of the class described, the

combination with a boiler, of a feed-water pump, a primary steam-pipe connecting the boiler with the pump, a throttle-valve disposed in the pipe between the boiler and the pump, a stop-valve also disposed within the pipe, a secondary pipe communicating with the primary pipe at opposite sides of thethrottle-valve, a stop-valve disposed within the secondary pipe, and mechanism operable by the rising and falling of the water in the boiler to maintain through the throttle-valve and pump a predetermined water-level in the boiler.

2. In a device of the class described, the combination with a boiler, 'of a feed-water pump, a primary steam-pipe connecting the boiler with the pump, a throttle-valve disposed in the pipe between the boiler and the pump, a stop-valve also disposed within the pipe, a secondary pipe communicating with the primary pipe at opposite sides of the throttle-valve, a stop-valve disposed within the secondary pipe, a casing in communication with the steam and water spaces of the boiler, a float disposed in the casing and ter to control the pump for maintaining a predetermined water-lev'el in the boiler.

3. In a device of the class described, the combination with a boiler, of a feed-water pump, a steam-pipe connecting the former with the latter, a valve disposed within the pipe between the boiler and the pump, a casing in communication with the steam and water spaces of the boiler, a rotary shaft dis posed within the casing, a float situated in the casing and actuated by the rise and fall of water in the boiler for operating the shaft, and operative connections between the shaft and valve for actuating the latter to control the pump for maintaining a predetermined water-level in the boiler.

In testimony that we claim the foregoing as our own we have hereto affixed our signatures in the presence of two witnesses.

FRANK W. COLLIN S. ELROY TOBIAS.

Witnesses:

OLGA BESSMER, JOHN BESSMER. 

